


Do Not Stand At My Grave and Weep

by theMusicmaniac



Series: Afterlife [1]
Category: Avengers: Endgame - Fandom, Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Afterlife, Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, Crack Treated Seriously, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, Fix-It, Fix-It of Sorts, Fluff and Angst, Getting Together, Happy Ending, I don't think anyone can really handle angst after that Endgame shitshow, I tried to make this as plausible as possible, Kind of Canon Compliant, Like a lot of fluff though, Like not a sad one I guess you can say, M/M, Natasha Romanov Is a Good Bro, Not Beta Read, Not Really Character Death, Post-Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Post-Endgame, Shenanigans, Sort Of, not sure I succeeded
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-30
Updated: 2019-04-30
Packaged: 2020-02-10 03:53:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18652381
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theMusicmaniac/pseuds/theMusicmaniac
Summary: Tony slowly opens his eyes.He’s lying in the shade of an old oak tree, staring at a mesmerizing kaleidoscope of vibrant green colour, the branches spread out, going on forever. It’s very peaceful, and Tony finds himself reluctant to move.“Are you gonna just lie there like a lump forever?” A familiar voice asks from the side.Tony sits bolt upright, tears already slipping down his cheeks, the sting of salt in his eyes."Natasha?"A happy ending, of sorts....ENDGAME SPOILERS. THERE'S NOT A LOT OF THEM, BUT THEY'RE STILL THERE, READ AT YOUR OWN RISK





	Do Not Stand At My Grave and Weep

**Author's Note:**

> So, I saw Endgame a couple of days ago and I was destroyed by that ending. Like utterly destroyed. I wrote this fic in a day, and decided to post it. Originally I was going to do a time travel fix-it (like others have been doing fabulously) but then I remembered this book I read back in middle school called The Lovely Bones, and I borrowed the core concept of someone watching over from the afterlife. Except this is a lot less angsty than that book. I can't handle angst rn lol. Not after Endgame. Also note that this talks about the afterlife, and I didn't want to make it one particular religion, since those things are usually tied up pretty closely. So I made it all of the religions XD.
> 
> Title and poem used is by Mary Elizabeth Frye.
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoy :)

_Do not stand at my grave and weep_

_I am not there. I do not sleep._

_I am a thousand winds that blow._

_I am the diamond glints on snow._

_I am the sunlight on ripened grain._

_I am the gentle autumn rain..._

 

* * *

 

It’s warm.

 

There’s a gentle whispering of cool wind, the sound of leaves rustling. Light filters in through the canopy, spreading dappled colour behind closed eyelids. The ground is blessedly cool beneath him, the sunlight wonderfully warm above.

 

Tony slowly opens his eyes.

 

He’s lying in the shade of an old oak tree, staring at a mesmerizing kaleidoscope of vibrant green colour, the branches spread out, going on forever. It’s very peaceful, and Tony finds himself reluctant to move.

 

“Are you gonna just lie there like a lump forever?” A familiar voice asks from the side.

 

Tony sits bolt upright, tears already slipping down his cheeks, the sting of salt in his eyes. He whips around to look at the apparition in front of him, an achingly familiar sight after what seems like ages, for all that it’s been only a day at most.

 

“Natasha?”

 

She embraces Tony, and they clutch at each other, crying in relief, in gratitude.

 

* * *

 

“So, how are you holding up?”

 

Natasha ends up showing him around the place. It’s beautiful here, all lush grasses and green fields, with beautiful glass buildings that reach for the sky. The Afterlife seems to reflect Life, still just as beautiful, still just as vibrant, but maybe not as broken. They walk through the park Tony had woke up in, and watch other spirits, some human, some alien, all going about their business, in all different methods of dress, a parallel of what it had been for them when they had still been alive.

 

Alive. Which Tony is not. Not anymore.

 

God, it’s so hard to wrap his head around. He thinks about Nat’s question and ends up reflecting on his life back on Earth, having beaten death so many times. And now it’s finally over. He can rest.

 

“Weird. If I’m gonna be honest” Tony answers, smiling sadly at Natasha as she takes another bite out of her hot dog. Money is not a thing here, but apparently food is. “A little antsy. Melancholy, yeah that’s definitely one, and maybe even...happy? At the same time. About how it ended. About how we saved them, how everyone’s safe, and that part’s amazing, but it’s also horrible at the same time because we have to let them go, they have to let _us_ go, and wow _that_ combination is an unusual feeling. Probably a bit gassy.”

Natasha laughs at that, carefree and bright, and Tony feels extraordinarily accomplished for such an small and ordinary thing.

 

“We missed you y’know. _God_ Nat, just hearing Clint talk about how you died-” Tony broke off, eyes burning.

 

“I know Tony. Hey, hey, it’s ok.” Nat puts her arm around him, smiling softly. Tony wipes at his eyes. “I saw, and I missed you guys too. Desperately.”

 

Tony looks at her questioningly. “Saw?” he asks. Natasha’s eyes widens and she laughs again, eating the rest of her hot dog in another bite.  

 

“Wow, I forgot to tell you. Boy are you in for a treat,” she smiles, dragging Tony up from the bench to his indignant protests.

 

Tony pesters her the entire way there, wherever there happens to be, because Natasha is apparently the same Natasha afterlife or otherwise, and refuses to tell him where they’re going. He tries to wheedle it out of her, but her poker face remains legendary, even as a retired superspy.

 

“Pleaaaaase.” Tony smacks her on the arm repeatedly. “Tell me tell me tell me.”

 

“Impatient as always Stark.” she snorts, being decidedly annoying because she still _refuses to tell him_. She seems happy though, truly happy in the first time in almost five years. It’s a good look on her.

 

“Ughhhhh the suspense is killing meeee.” Tony drags a hand down his face dramatically, earning a few amused looks from passing spirits. He gives all of them a small smile.

 

“Stop with that you big baby, we’re here.” Natasha pulls him into a rather unremarkable building, if you ignore the fact that it’s painted entirely white, as opposed to the sleek glass and warm tones of the other ones they’ve passed.

 

“Well this seems ominous,” Tony says as he takes in the variety of window cubicles lining the walls. There are some people milling around here, laughing with each other and talking.

 

Natasha watches a boy make his friend laugh so hard he falls off a chair and turns to Tony with a dry expression. “Yes. It’s utterly horrifying.”

 

Natasha drags him up to one of the empty windows where a teenage girl dressed completely in white is sitting, typing something up on a sleek desktop computer. She looks up when they approach, and gives them a huge smile. She’s wearing a “Hello my name is” sticker that dubs her name as Addilynn.

 

“Natasha!” She says excitedly, and Tony gives Natasha an amused look which she rolls her eyes at.

 

“Hello Addilynn, how is everything?”

 

“Ugh.” is the response Natasha gets, the girl giving her a long suffering look and Nat laughs. “Bureaucracy is soooo boring, but it must be done to keep things running smoothly.” She intones the last bit in a dry voice. “At least that’s what the big Boss says. Well. Bosses. There are too many to count. We’ve had an influx of departures in the last few days, which is wonderful of course, God I’m so happy about that, those people arrived way before their time because of that evil, vile - GAH -”

 

Tony exchanges an amused look with Natasha at this point as the girl continues to rant.

 

“-but still you wouldn’t _believe_ all the paperwork headquarters has been buried in, trying to keep up with all the necessary memory storage and erasages - of course I don’t need to tell _Black Widow_ about all of this, you probably already know and - ohhhh my _God_ , wait wait I take that all back - you’re _Tony Stark_ , I’ve been ranting about _paperwork_ to the current savior of the universe what have I done -”  

 

This last comment proves to be a little too much for both Natasha and Tony’s rising amusement and they burst into laughter.

 

“Heyyy, rude.” Addilynn, who Tony is assuming to be an angel or another similar being of some kind, turns a bit pink and pouts at their laughter, although it keeps threatening to turn into a smile. Finally she stops fighting it and starts laughing herself.

 

“Ok fine, that was a _bit_ funny. Nat you could have _warned me_ that you had _Tony Stark_ with you, I thought we were _friends_ -”

 

Nat snorts. “Ok, out of the two of us, who is _actually_ in control of all the arrivals and departures though?”

 

Addilynn sighs. “Ok fair point.” She turns to Tony, joking smile turning a bit sad. “So, I’m assuming you came here to sign up for a Screen?”

 

Tony gives her a confused look. “Screen?”

 

Addilynn shrugs before explaining, “It allows you take a look at the events currently happening on Earth. Some people want a chance to see how their loved ones are doing, so we offer them that glimpse, although we often warn not to come here too much. Bad for mentality, to let your past consume you.” She gives Tony a sad smile as his eyes widen throughout her explanation, and for the first time since the conversation started, he gets a glimpse of her true age, all those years of wisdom and compassion and infinite sadness reflecting in her young eyes.

 

“Yes please.” Tony whispers in response, and Addilynn gestures them to follow her without another word.

 

* * *

 

“We aren’t actually outside the timestream technically,” Addilynn explains as she sets up the equipment in the room she had taken them to, “Hence explaining why people only arrive here when they die in real time, so you can rewind the Screen to what has already happened, but you can’t actually look into the future without some serious juice to back it up.”

 

“Infinity stones level juice?” Tony asks, smirking.

 

“Exactly.” Addilynn laughs, and then gives Tony a headset. “It’s currently kind of like a simulation, just without all that clunky VR equipment bullshit-” Tony laughs at that. “-just speak your commands and the room will do the rest. We also have fail-safes to avoid viewing all the, erm-unwanted moments in ones life, so you don’t have to worry about accidentally happening on a more - ahem, intimate, um moment. Don’t wanna scar anyone too badly ha. We do allow for short spiritual visits instead of a mere simulation, but for that you’ll have to apply for approval from the Immigration offices. That’s where I work in case you didn’t realize.”

 

“Immigration offices.” Tony echoes, very amused despite himself. “Funny.”

 

“We try.” Addilynn shrugs with a shit-eating grin, and then pats Tony on the back. “Have fun. Good luck.”

 

Tony nods, and turns to Nat.

 

“You ready?”

 

She answers with an affirmative, and Tony turns back to the room, and quite suddenly, he’s at a loss for what to do. He wants to see them so badly that it aches, but he doesn’t know where to even begin.   

 

“Tony?” Nat says tentatively, squeezing his shoulder. “We don’t have to do this today if you’re not ready yet. It took me a bit before I could bring myself to look.”

 

He puts his hand over hers on his shoulder. “No, no I’m good. I just. I don’t know where to go first.”

 

“Why don’t we start at the end of the battle.”

 

So they do.

 

Tony watches all of it, straight through, watches as he’s carried off the field by a broken and battered looking Steve, with Rhodey, Thor and Pepper with her arms around Peter following behind. He watches as everyone kneels in mourning and respect as the procession makes their way by, how his name is whispered through the fields almost like a prayer, in gratitude.

 

He watches his little girl Morgan as she’s led through the house by Happy and Pepper, watching the video as holographic him tells her he loves her three thousand and God he’s so glad he ended up making that video, that he got that last chance to tell her baby girl, tell all of them how much he loves them. He watches all of their faces, at how broken they all look and he wants to shout, tell them he’s in a good place, that _they’re_ in a good place, they’re safe and it’s warm here, wants them to know, wants them to stop hurting for him.

 

He watches them place the wreath for him in the water, and he sees Rhodey and his beautiful wife Pepper and his amazing daughter, both of whom he loves so much it hurts, and Happy and Clint and Sam and Bucky and Bruce and Thor and Steve, oh God _Steve_ , expression twisted in repressed pain and it’s really one of the few times Tony has seen him cry and he can’t help thinking it’s fitting that Steve is standing with his family, because it’s Steve, it’s Steve, it’s always been Steve.

 

He watches Clint and Wanda’s conversation by the lake and he smiles a watery smile with Natasha because yeah, what they said is pretty damn accurate.

 

There are families together at that wake, alive, together, and Tony is heartbroken that he won’t be there to help his little girl grow up, but she gets to live in a world that’s whole, and so Tony can’t bring himself to regret what he did.

 

He watches as Steve gets on the launch pad of the machine with that expression on his face, and Tony’s not surprised that Steve manages to change the game entirely just like he always does. He’s glad that he gets to live out a happy life, if not a bit perplexed.

 

“Is Peggy here?” Tony asks, and Natasha startles a bit, eyes glued to the scene before them. She wipes away some tears before answering.

 

“Yeah, yeah she is. Her husband too.” she says, and Tony tilts his head to the side, curiosity taking over. “How exactly does that work?”

 

Natasha shrugs. “I’m pretty sure she just gains a new set of memories. She gets to live out both lifetimes, with the people she cares about. Pretty good deal if you ask me.”

 

Tony scrunches up his nose a bit at Natasha’s imprecise response. Nat rolls her eyes.

 

“Look, I don’t know okay, time travel is weird, you’re the one who knows how to do all that physics shit, mister genius playboy billionaire philanthropist.”

 

Tony laughs at that and goes back to watching the screen. It’s been a few weeks since he crossed over apparently, and they scroll through the footage together of the rebuilding efforts and the universe healing. It’s nice.

 

They finally make their way through most of the events happening until the present day, and Tony throws an arm around Nat in comfort as the Screen shuts down.

 

“We’ll check on them occasionally to make sure they’re not fucking up too badly.” Nat comments drily, smiling at Tony, who laughs.

 

“And until then? What do we do?”

 

Nat starts walking out of the room, Tony falling in step with her as she waves goodbye to Addilynn.

 

“Ironically, we mourn and move on. We live.”

 

* * *

 

Tony isn’t expecting it when Steve finally arrives.

 

It’s been quite a while. Tony’s...actually not entirely sure how long it’s been since that day in the screening room, time is a bit finicky here in the Afterlife, and he finds that he’s started to mark things down as momentous events rather than days and units. The day Steve arrives is another one of those markers.

 

Tony was in his workshop in the place he shares with Nat, fiddling with things, because clearly a heaven can never be a heaven for him unless he gets to tinker. He’s very glad that the laws of physics behave in the same way in the Afterlife as it does on Earth, although he supposes there’s no reason for it not to. He misses Friday, Dummy, Butterfingers and You like he misses a limb, and has already re-created their code, but he’s not entirely sure he should activate it. It’s an ongoing debate.

 

Anyways, he’s in the middle of fiddling with a schematic trying to figure out how to fix a problematic design flaw, and really you’d think he would find designing things easier in the Afterlife just on principle but apparently not, when there’s a clearing of a throat from behind him. It sounds very very familiar. Tony knows that uncertain tone, would know it in his sleep, the same way he knows Pepper’s disapproving but fond looks, and Rhodey’s exasperated laugh. Tony whips around to see Steve there, young again, staring at Tony as if he’s seen a ghost which, well, technically.

 

“Tony?” Steve asks, voice hoarse and cracking, and he looks so broken and vulnerable, cautious hope flickering in his wide eyes, as if he’s worried that Tony will disappear if he blinks. Tony can distantly feel his eyes welling up with tears.

 

“Natasha,” Tony croaks, and clears his throat impatiently, “Natasha, get over here!” he yells, voice louder, and then launches himself at Steve, who stumbles back but finally catches himself, and hugs him tightly, so tightly, hands desperate on Tony’s back, as if holding him close will prevent him from disappearing, and Tony wants to reassure him, to tell him he doesn’t have to worry, but he’s kind of crying too hard to say anything of the sort, face buried in Steve’s shoulder.

 

Natasha runs in with a kitchen knife in hand, and Tony feels a bubble of fond amusement for her because even in the _afterlife_ she just remains so _Natasha_ , but then she sees Steve and her hand goes slack, the knife falling to the floor with a clang, and the expression on Steve’s face is heartbreaking, and long story short, they all end up in a gigantic sobbing mess of a group hug.

 

Tony wouldn’t have had it any other way.

 

* * *

 

They have way too much fun showing Steve around after that, who looks around in wide-eyed wonder, and starts a brief conversation with every stranger that says hello to him on the street, beaming smile on his face until Tony and Natasha have to drag him away to laughter and the general amusement of all.

 

There are sad moments of course, there’s bound to be with them discussing all that’s happened in the almost fifteen years after the final battle with Thanos (really to be expected that Steve took so long to get here, he’s the peak of human health even at ninety), but it doesn’t last, because they all know that it’s not the end, not really. They’ll see all of them again eventually.

 

Steve talks about all that has happened with them, because watching it on a screen in a room really can’t amount to actually being there, and he talks about Morgan and how she had grown up to be a wonderful young woman, beautiful and hyper-organized and tenacious like her mother, headstrong and brave and sharp as a tack.

 

 _“Just like you.”_ Steve had added at that, smiling a watery smile at Tony, and really it took all Tony had not to break down into happy tears again. They talked about Sam and Bucky finally getting their heads out of their asses and getting together, with Nat gloating that she had told Steve that them bickering had been unresolved sexual tension and not hate but did he believe her _noooo_ , and Tony laughing so hard his stomach hurt, and Steve sniping back that how was he supposed to know that them passive aggressively arguing over a car seat was premature love…

 

They talk about Pepper finally re-marrying about two years ago to Happy, both Nat and Steve treading lightly on the topic for Tony’s sake, but he only shakes his head and smiles at them happily. He still loves her, and he always will, but that love has changed in the time he’s spent here into something calmer, accepting. She’s his best friend, his family first and foremost, and always has been. Maybe it’s the fact that he’s dead, he doesn’t know, but Tony’s glad that she’s finally gotten over him, that she’s living out her life to the fullest with Happy, who he also loves like family, and that Morgan now has a full support behind her as she grows up and grows old. He got five wonderful happy years with them, and he cherishes those memories, but that time has ended and he knows it. It doesn’t really feel like an ending though. It feels like peace.

 

Tony tells them as much, and Natasha and Steve both nod in understanding. They’ve all lost people. They get it.

 

They take Steve back to Addilynn, who flirts shamelessly with him despite looking seventeen and actually being thousands of years old, and then coos over Steve’s adorable stuttering and blush as Natasha and Tony laugh themselves to tears in the background and Steve throws them long-suffering looks.

 

They cry when they watch Steve’s funeral, because it’s him finally saying goodbye to the life he had on Earth.

 

“Peggy’s here.” Tony comments afterwards, when they’re sitting on a bench, waiting for Natasha to come back with ice cream. “We can go see her if you want. Although I gotta warn you, I think she lives with her husband. Erm, the one that’s not you. Um. Y’know. The other one.”

 

Steve laughs at Tony’s verbal fumbling, eyes bright. Picks up Tony’s hand and squeezes it. Shakes his head.

 

“Maybe later.” he responds, and Tony sees the parallel of emotion in Steve’s eyes and gets it, the same way that Steve understood Tony as he talked about Pepper.

 

Tony watches Steve when he finally looks away, all beautiful blue eyes and vibrant golden hair, and feels a pang of what had almost been between them, when they had still been alive, that spark that he had buried after civil war, after all that hurt and pain. Even then, it had always been Steve. Always them, whether on the same side or opposite.

 

Maybe. Maybe now, instead of then.

 

He squeezes Steve’s hand back, linking their fingers. When Natasha returns with the ice cream, raising a perfectly shaped eyebrow at the hand-holding and Steve’s small smile, Tony shrugs and doesn’t let go.

 

* * *

 

They take it slow because there’s really no reason to rush, not when they’ve got all the time in the world.

 

The three of them do end up tracking down Peggy, and they all go and visit her, with Tony and Nat making small talk with her husband, who is actually a delightfully funny and a down to Earth sort of guy, as Steve and Peggy have a conversation in private.

 

Tony doesn’t mean to, really he doesn’t, he’s just trying to find the bathroom, and really why the hell does this bodily function still exist here in the afterlife, it’s completely illogical, but he overhears a bit of their conversation on the way back downstairs.

 

“I’ve always wondered why you decided to come back you know. It _was_ kind of uncharacteristic of you. Not that I’m complaining.” Peggy’s amused voice drifts out from the slightly open doorway. Steve laughs.

 

“I dunno Pegs. I guess I. Wanted a break, maybe. I wanted to live my life, like Tony had said. There wasn’t anything holding me there anymore. Not really.”

 

Peggy hums in understanding. “He was your home, wasn’t he?”

 

There’s no verbal reply that Tony can hear, but he makes his way back downstairs anyways, warmth spreading through him in increments, like the way the sun might peak over the horizon, bright and shimmering and alive.

 

Natasha’s laughing at something Peggy’s husband had said when Tony arrives back to the living room and she raises his eyebrows at how Tony’s almost glowing.

 

“Were the bathroom soaps that amusing?” Natasha comments, smile twitching at the corner of her mouth.

 

“Shut up and go back to discussing knife brands, you psychos” Tony responds, plopping himself down on the couch with a huff and the room rings with their laughter.

 

Natasha peels off from Steve and Tony when they finally bid Peggy and her husband goodbye after promising to visit again soon, citing that she wants to go fix up their disaster of a garden back at their place.

 

Tony side-eyes her, because it’s been fifteen years and Natasha has never once shown an urge to garden, and really she could’ve come up with a _way_ better excuse than that because hello, super spy, but doesn’t comment on it.

 

“So, we’ve got a few hours to kill before sundown I guess.” Tony says, strolling alongside Steve after Natasha leaves. “Anything in particular that you wanna do?”

 

“Well,” Steve begins after a moment's hesitation. Tony finds himself admiring how the afternoon light makes Steve’s pale skin and hair glow. He looks beautiful. “I think...I want to take you out on a date.” and Tony starts to smile.

 

“Okay,” he says simply, taking Steve’s hand and squeezing it. “Let’s do it then.”

 

They end up at Tony’s new favourite burger place, a volunteer food place _technically_ , because literally all the places are volunteer, money is no longer a thing.

 

Steve laughs when Tony comes back from the counter carrying an order of cheeseburgers.

 

“Of course that’s what you choose,” Steve rolls his eyes, but his smile is beaming. Tony gasps dramatically.

 

“I am wounded by that Steve, you’ve _wounded_ me, cheeseburgers are the perfect food and they deserve to be appreciated, it’s not my fault that living in the 1900’s has rotted all your tastebuds-” Tony’s rant goes on for another two minutes but at this point Steve is laughing too hard for it to make a difference. It’s a wonderful sound.

 

They have a very nice date, with Steve listening intently as Tony jabbers on about his work, which is really just tinkering at this point, (although Addilynn has taken to asking Tony for repairs and adjustments of various equipment, so Tony figures it’s really only a matter of time before he’s designing for the Afterlife, and isn’t _that_ an interesting idea) and Tony listens as Steve talks about the various people he’s met around and how he’s picked up art again.

 

Steve’s hand lies casually on the table as he speaks. Eventually the temptation proves to be too much for Tony and he reaches out and takes Steve’s hand, entwining their fingers on the table. Steve falters, a blush spreading over his face as he smiles down at his food before he continues talking.

 

They go for a walk around the park afterwards and somehow end up debating rather vigorously about the merits of pineapple on pizza, with Tony for and Steve against.

 

“That’s it, I want a divorce.” Tony declares loudly as they stride up to their front door. “I cannot in good conscience date someone who has such bad taste in food, that’s it Steven, it’s over for us.”

 

“Tony we’re not even married.” Steve stutters around his laughs, tugging on their joined hands to get Tony to slow down in his violent stomping. Tony bats at Steve’s arm in fake offense.

 

“Get thee gone fiend, I don’t wish to gain your bad taste through osmosis, I’m probably infected already,” Tony says in response, and then screeches when Steve lunges at him, grabbing him into a hug that lifts him off the ground.

 

“Natasha, heeeelp, Steve’s trying to murder me!” Tony yells at the house. Steve laughs at that and spins him around once before setting him down again, planting a kiss on his cheek for good measure. Tony definitely does not blush. Or squeak. Not at all.

 

“FUCK OFF STARK.” comes Natasha’s muffled response from what sounds like the back of their house.

 

“Rude.” Tony grumbles and Steve makes a sound surprisingly close to a giggle, adorable and sweet.

 

“Today was fun,” Tony smiles up at Steve, who nods in response, face positively glowing with happiness. The rays from the setting sun make a sort of halo around his blonde hair and it takes Tony’s breathe away.

 

“Yeah, it was.” Steve agrees.

 

“I have to ask though,” Tony continues, and Steve tilts his head in question. “Before we go any further, I need to know. You already heard what I have to say about Pepper, but are you sure you’re okay with...moving on from Peggy? I know how much you care about her and I don’t want you to regret starting something with me if you still love her and maybe you could, could figure something out with her, or -”

 

“Tony…” Steve stops his babbling gently with a hand on his arm. “Tony, I’m okay, really. It’s been what, seventeen years since Peggy died? I will always love her, just like you will probably always love Pepper. But I got my lifetime with her, and I’m satisfied with it. Peggy has her husband now who she also loves dearly, and if I’m gonna be entirely honest...it’s never been just her.”

 

Tony looks at Steve in confusion, who elaborates. “You can love more than one person Tony,” Steve says softly, tucking a stray piece of hair behind Tony’s ear. It makes a warm feeling spread from the point of contact, but Tony ignores that to listen to Steve. “It’s always been you and her for me. She knows. Of course she knows, and she made it very clear how idiotic she found the civil war between us to be.” Steve laughs, and Tony finds himself starting to smile. Steve looks down sheepishly, intertwines their fingers again. “You’re my home. And I’m sorry it took me so long to realize.”

 

Tony makes an inarticulate noise at that because, _holy shit_ , happiness spilling through him like a wave, warm and sweet and bright, and tilts Steve’s chin back up, surges in because he doesn’t think he can wait another second.

 

The kiss is languid and slow at first, but quickly turns into something heated, Tony parting Steve’s lips with his tongue so he can slide inside, taste him, and Steve’s mouth is so warm, and the noises he makes absolutely sinful. Tony pushes in closer, pressed body to body, Steve’s hands settling around his waist, which is a good thing because Tony’s knees might have given out as Steve continues to kiss Tony within an inch of his life, and does he even have knees anymore, because at this point Tony might just be a puddle of happy goo.

 

They pull back eventually, and Tony sets his forehead against Steve’s, happy smile plastered firmly on his face.

 

“Hello.” He grins at Steve, who laughs.

 

“Hi.” Steve’s eyes dance, and they’re beautiful from up close, subtle hues and tones shifting and swirling, and Tony could look at them forever.

“Ugh, get a room you two and stop canoodling on the front lawn.” A voice grumbles from behind them.

 

“Canoodling?” Tony asks, incredulous, craning his neck to look at an unimpressed Natasha, and Steve groans, turning red and burying his face in Tony’s neck.

 

“Yes. Canoodling.” Natasha rolls her eyes at them, dusting off her hands before stepping off the porch to grab the hose situated underneath. Tony watches her incredulously, taking in her dirt splattered jeans and messy bun.

 

“Wait, you mean to tell me,” Tony begins. “that you were _actually gardening_??” Natasha continues to look very unimpressed.

 

“ _Yes_ Tony, I was _actually gardening_ .” she snorts, winding the hose around one of her shoulders. “I’m planting rose bushes.” Tony splutters slightly, to which Steve starts laughing into Tony’s neck, which, ok rude, but is also very _very_ distracting.

 

“ _Fifteen years_ Romanov and you haven’t ever shown the slightest inclination of gardening, excuse _me_ if I thought it was just a poorly made excuse.” Tony glared.

 

“Not everything is about you Stark.” Natasha smirks, rolling her eyes. Then her expression softens into a smile. “I’m glad you two had a good time though, you guys deserve it.” Then her expression shifts into one of unholy glee. “Don’t know if there’s STDs here though so use protection. Have fun, shut the windows, I’ll be out back with earphones in if you need me.”

 

“Oh my _God._ ” Steve groans from where his face is still buried in Tony’s neck. The tips of his ears are pink. It’s kind of adorable.

 

“Fuck you Nat.” Tony calls cheerfully, laughing.

 

“Right back at you Tony.” Natasha waves over her shoulder. “Not you Steve, you I like.”

 

Steve mumbles incoherently in response before finally resurfacing to look at Tony, pink flush still visible in his cheeks.

 

“So,” Tony starts, looking Steve up and down slowly with intent, and Steve promptly turns a very attractive red again. Tony smiles. “You wanna?”

 

Steve laughs and pulls him inside the house.

 

* * *

 

Life (or rather death) continues after that. Tony gets commissioned to help out at Immigration Offices (God he still can’t get over that name) and he happily designs new methods of screening, new architecture for new arrivals to live in, and often comes home to a paint splattered Steve bickering happily with a dirt splattered Natasha. Despite the occasional moments of melancholy, or even nightmares that Steve often helps soothe away, Tony is happy, truly happy.

 

It takes a while before anyone else of their makeshift family shows up, and Tony is glad because he wants them to live a long and good life. He watches his daughter grow up, restart a company, fall in love and have a family of her own, gets special permission to be at Morgan’s wedding with Steve and Natasha when that comes, and then again after she brings his granddaughter home for the first time.

 

Tony watches Peter grow up too, become like a big brother to Morgan and he loves the kid like he's his own, making sure to attend his wedding as well, although he doesn't end up having children.

 

There is one amusing visit, Tony will admit, where the three of them manage to get permission to go back just for the heck of it. They may or may not mess with their assorted family a little bit, much to the amusement of Addilynn, who really is more of a shit-stirrer than her innocent appearance would have you believe. She makes them tell her everything (despite the fact that she could technically watch all the pranks they pulled) and then laughs herself to tears.

 

Decades and decades later, people begin showing up.

 

The first one is Fury, who Tony refuses to hug on principle, but he will admit the greeting is somewhat tearful. Fury doesn’t cry because Tony maintains that the man is a machine, but he’s definitely not unaffected.

 

Then comes Clint, Sam and Bucky in that order. There’s a great deal of crying and hugging for those reunions, and they all somehow end up in a gigantic pile on the couch, watching old Friends re-runs.

 

Then Rhodey, Happy, Pepper and Bruce follow, which cause more tears and hugging, and eventually the times become shorter and shorter between the new arrivals of their family members as they watch them age and grow. Tony makes sure to have a talk with Pepper and Happy, which ends in tearful hugs and a bittersweet smile from Pepper.

 

Eventually Addilynn has to get Tony to design a bigger screening room in order to fit all of their various family members.

 

The day Morgan shows up, Tony spends the entire day catching up with her along with Pepper, Happy and even Peter, who has been unofficially adopted into the Stark/Hogan family. It’s one of the best days of his life, getting to finally talk face to face with his beautiful, headstrong daughter and his wonderful honorary son.

 

They worry a little bit about Thor, since they don’t really know the protocol for God of Thunder when it comes to the afterlife, or death even, but he does end up arriving eventually, in his former young glory instead of a wizened old man like he had been in life.

 

Loki follows soon after, and Thor looks on with a worried expression at everyone gathered around. They all know of how Loki had tried to stop Thanos, and his reconciliation with Thor, but it’s still an awkward situation overall.

 

Tony’s the one who walks forward and offers Loki a hand up from where he arrived, sitting on their living room floor, funnily enough.

 

“So.” he says, when Loki is finally on his feet, looking a little uncertain. “You’ve finally kicked the bucket huh? What is this, the fifth time you've supposedly died? I’m shocked.”

 

There’s a moment of silence and then everyone starts laughing. Loki rolls his eyes, but is welcomed into the group with surprising warmth. Thor can’t seem to stop smiling the rest of the day.

 

At one point, and Tony’s not entirely sure who, but he has a suspicion it might actually be Pepper, Natasha and Peggy’s scheming that set this up (and isn’t _that_ a terrifying thought, the three of them talking is enough to take over the world), but there’s a suggestion that Steve and Tony should get married and make it official, to which Tony had responded that there is literally no point, they’re all dead, and Steve had shrugged and said it would be nice though, and Tony had given Steve the Unimpressed Look™, and Steve had given him the Puppy-dog Eyes™, and Morgan had smacked Tony on the arm and went _“Daaad, now look what you’ve done, Steve’s upset”_ and now here he was watching his fiance walk down the aisle of a beautiful wedding chapel (why does the afterlife have a _wedding chapel_ , read: they are all _dead_ ) with all the rest of his cobbled together family around to watch him cry and laugh and generally make a fool of himself. Tony’s never been happier.

 

Steve finds him later out on the balcony during the wedding reception, and puts his arm around Tony’s waist, a line of warmth down Tony’s side in the cool night air.

 

Tony grabs Steve’s hand and intertwines it with his, their rings glinting, and plants a kiss on Steve’s knuckles. They had discussed keeping the rings from their previous marriages on as well, but decided in the end to wear them on a chain around their necks as a reminder of what had passed.

 

“No regrets?” Steve asks, whispering the words into Tony’s hair. Tony tilts his head up for a kiss and Steve obliges him.

 

“None.” He smiles happily, and continues to look up at the stars, with Steve at his side and the drift of music and laughter from behind them. Forever alongside the people he loves.

 

_...when you awaken in the morning's hush_

_I am the swift uplifting rush_

_Of quiet birds in circled flight._

_I am the soft stars that shine at night._

_Do not stand at my grave and cry;_

_I am not there. I did not die._

 

~ _Mary Elizabeth Frye_

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> And so it ends. I'll admit part of the reason I wrote this was as therapy for my heartbrokenness after I saw the movie. Tony is kinda my favourite character so that absolutely killed me dead. Fix-it fics are great, but I felt the need to create an ending that complies to canon, just to sooth my battered emotions XDDD. I will admit some of the characters might be a bit OOC but, gah, what can you do. *shrugs*
> 
> Anyways, thank you for reading as always, and I hope you enjoyed :)
> 
> (come follow me on tumblr y'all, it's the-music-maniac)


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